Chef English speaks out on habitual bad tippers

So Kelly English raised a few eyebrows when he said there's a price to pay for bad tipping.

I say good for him.

Last week, English and City Grocery chef/owner John Currence of Oxford were featured in a short CNN video, shot in early June in New York, talking about the restaurant business.

To say they were honest is to sell it short. Currence, infamously outspoken, declared that there are some people in the world that you just can't "un-piss off." But what has gotten the most attention is English's revelation that bad tippers can't expect to keep coming to his restaurant.

That's right.

Keep in mind that English and Currence were each interviewed for about 25 minutes, and the video released of both of them is only about 90 seconds. It was heavily edited, of course, so I called English to get more information. I wasn't the only one to call. He said others have called, wondering if the reason they have problems getting a reservation is because they don't tip enough.

First of all, the answer to that is no. English's Restaurant Iris has 13 tables, and to get a reservation you have to book a couple of weeks in advance.

But the part about tipping? True — though it merits explanation.

They don't blacklist diners willy-nilly. No one is carrying around a clipboard, noting names and percentages and setting a seating order based on tipping.

It's more of a three-strikes policy, a rule fairly applied to many things in life.

"We're talking about serial bad tippers," English said.

Tipping is part of dining out. Servers are paid $2.13 per hour, so they live on what we leave on the table. And let's be fair about it: People know they're expected to tip when they go to dinner.

"It's a social contract," English said. "You're going to tip your server if you go out to dinner in the United States of America. It's how the restaurant system works."

There's certainly something to be said for establishing a system where tipping is not necessary, or where we tip only because we want to leave a little something extra. But that would mean a great increase in what you pay at a restaurant. It might suit you, it might not, but it really doesn't matter much for now: That's not the way it works.

English knows that every dining experience isn't ideal. Sometimes the food isn't right; sometimes the service isn't. The best thing you can do is bring it to someone's attention, and give the restaurateur the opportunity to make it right. The way I see it, taking it out of the server's paycheck isn't the right way to go about it. My base for tipping is 20 percent, and I'll adjust up from there for exceptional service. It would take extraordinarily bad service, as in my server being intentionally rude, for me to reduce the tip. I know people who routinely tip 30 percent; I find that excessive. I know those who still tip 15 percent, which I think is too low.

As they say, your mileage may vary.

While English says his position isn't unusual among restaurant owners, he's the first one I've heard say it. And on video! I'm glad he did. I like that he's got his employees' backs.

"I respect everyone who works for me," he said. "If I won't stick up for them, who will?"

Go to the Southern Tastes Facebook page at facebook.com/sotastes to see the video. Tell us what you think.

Grocery shopping

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Recipe of the week

This soup is decadent, but I don't seem to be able to eat enough squash this year — I think I could eat it in some form every day. In this week's recipe, I cut the chicken broth to 1 quart, and used whole milk in place of both the half and half and the heavy cream. It was delicious, though surely it would be even better just as written.

Paulette's Yellow Squash Soup

Makes 6 to 8 servings.

Ingredients

3 pounds yellow squash, diced

3 cups chopped onion

1 cup finely diced celery

1/4 cup diced carrots

4 tablespoons butter

1 1/4 quarts chicken broth

1 pint half and half

1 cup heavy cream

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon white pepper

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

Directions

1 Cook vegetables in basil and butter about 10 minutes, stirring constantly. Add chicken broth, then cover and bring to boil; simmer until vegetables are tender.

2 Purée mixture in a blender, then return to the pot and add half and half and heavy cream. Heat, but don't boil. Add remaining seasoning and stir well. Garnish with a dash of nutmeg in the center of the soup. Serve hot or cold. Note: See notes in column about replacing the half and half and cream with whole milk.